Park and Preach

Two award-winning singer-songwriters deliver an EP of melancholic Americana written and recorded during a series of Brooklyn-to-Nashville-and-back road trips.

Bryan “Park” Miller and Christopher “Preacher Boy” Watkins first started writing songs together in the early 2000s, and began making regular trips between Brooklyn and Nashville shortly thereafter.

Together and separately they’ve achieved significant success. Park is a two-time Nashville Songwriter’s Association honoree. Preach has earned a Gold Record for his work with Rick Rubin and Eagle-Eye Cherry.

In between outside projects, they made some time to record something for themselves. You might say this EP has been more than a decade in the making.

Following in the footsteps of The Band, Bob Dylan, and Townes Van Zandt, the album’s sound is kindred spirit to artists such as Alejandro Escovedo, Steve Earle, and Lucinda Williams, while comparisons to contemporaries like Old Crow Medicine Show or Gillian Welch wouldn’t be far off the mark.

Park’s pure tenor sits at the center of the alternatively buoyant and melancholy sound, while Preach’s unmistakable slide work on National Resophonic leads a multi-instrumental chorus that includes Telecaster, mandolin, harmonica, piano, and more.

Ultimately, the “Drive In” EP is an expression of the magic that can happen when two veteran singer-songwriters who’ve logged a lot of miles together take the time to record a handful of their own poignant and powerful songs. For those who like their Americana spiked with a bit of pathos and poetry, take a trip to the Drive In.